Football Players Who ALMOST DIED.

From Ronaldo almost dying in his Ferrari, to Neymar and his entire family crashing in a severe accident, these are the moments when football players, including Lionel Messi, almost died. January 8th, 2009. The time, 10am. Just like on a regular practice day, Ronaldo was perfectly ready to try some new skills for the oncoming 2010 World Cup. He grabbed the keys of his Ferrari F99 GTB and drove towards the grounds for practice. But what he was about to witness would change his entire life. After about 20 minutes of leaving home, Ronaldo went through the Manchester airport tunnel located in the UK. Still, there were no signs of danger that could have resulted in a serious injury. It was only some droplets of water on the road that Ronaldo and everyone could have easily ignored. But as soon as he crossed over those droplets, Ronaldo blacked out for a few minutes. The moment he realized his surroundings, he immediately checked for injury signs on his body. Thankfully, there were none, but when he got out of his car, the entire front of his Ferrari was damaged. The crash was so intense that the windscreen, left-wing mirror and front and rear tires were completely destroyed. When the police arrived at the accident, Ronaldo was shaking and said, the crash was caused by oil on the road. Now, it should be noted that in 2009, Ronaldo was still at the beginning of his successful career. So, there is a high possibility that a jealous competitor could have intentionally spilled oil on his regular route towards practice. Luckily, that night, the world's most famous and richest athlete was saved by God. But for Neymar, it was a bit more serious than Ronaldo. Because he neither had Ferrari to save his life, but also his entire family was with him. You see, when Neymar was just 4 months old, his relatives waited for months to meet junior Neymar. So, one day, his parents decided to finally go on a long drive and show Neymar the rest of the family. However, before they could arrive at their destination, an oncoming vehicle ran off a steep mountain and lost control. Despite Neymar's father trying his best to save them from the oncoming vehicle, nothing could protect them from this fatal crash. After gaining consciousness from the accident, his father immediately looked to the back, where Neymar was locked in a baby seat. Thankfully, Neymar Junior was fine. At that moment, his father vowed to never let any danger get close to him again. So, he worked hard every day to bring out his highest potential. And today, Neymar gives all of his credit to his father. He said, My father has been by my side since I was little. He takes care of things, my finances, and my family. In fact, Neymar inherited his name from his father, Neymar Santos Sr. But for Jermaine Pennant, there was no one to support him. Born in Nottinghamshire, England, Pennant was heavily affected by the excessive amount of drug and crime in his neighborhood. In fact, his drinking habits became so bad that in February of 2004, Pennant was banned from driving for 16 months after he was caught drunk driving in Paddington, West London. Surprisingly, despite having a 16-month ban on his driving, desperate Pennant grabbed his Mercedes on January 23, 2005 and drove straight on a busy road. But this time, it was different from what he experienced before. As Pennant was again drinking while driving, he seriously crashed his Mercedes into a lamppost in Aylesbury. Thankfully, no one was injured, but Pennant was sentenced to 90 days in prison. Although this happened almost 20 years ago, Pennant today credits football for saving him from the life he never wanted. But for legendary Messi, his football career almost took his life during the 2017 match between Juventus and Barcelona. Just like every other game, Messi was in full swing. With the crowd cheering his name, Messi's spirits elevated to an all-new level. And the perfect moment to score a desperate goal came his way. In one moment, the ball floated in the air towards Messi, and he took a massive jump to control the ball on his chest. However, Miralem Pjanic caught Messi by surprise and tried to defend himself by pushing Messi into the air. And before Messi could realize anything, this happened. When the medical staff checked him out, they only said one thing. Had Messi moved less than an inch more, he would have broken his neck. After this incident, Messi decided to retire from his football career. But his fans were not ready to give up on him. Right after his announcement, a massive campaign was launched in Argentina to convince Messi to change his mind. Posters such as, Don't Go Leo, could be seen everywhere, and more than 50,000 supporters marched on the street. Even Argentina president Mauricio Macri requested Messi to not quit, by stating, We are lucky. It is one of life's pleasures. It is a gift from God to have the best player in the world in a footballing country like ours. Lionel Messi is the greatest thing we have in Argentina, and we must take care of him. Well, when the whole country is determined to convince one man, it becomes hard to say no to anyone. Because just a week after Messi's announcement, Argentine newspaper La Nacion reported that he was reconsidering playing for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. And in September 2018, World Cup qualifier Messi proved a dramatic comeback by scoring a 1-0 home win against Uruguay. Messi proudly said, A lot of things went through my mind on the night of the final, and I gave serious thought to quitting. But my love for my country, and this shirt, are too great. Although Messi managed to save his neck from the prayers of his fans, for John Terry, everyone in the stadium lost hope in his life. To better understand what happened, let's rewind back to the 2007 League Cup final between Chelsea and Arsenal when God gave up on John Terry. Now, the finals are always intense, because when millions of people watch a football match, football players owe a great responsibility to keep them entertained every second. It was the 56th minute of the match, and the score of 1-1 was making everyone in the stadium bite their nails. As Terry saw the oncoming opportunity, he decided to strike a perfect goal using his head. However, at the same time, Arsenal's Abu Diaby took a flying kick toward the ball, but instead hit Terry's face. Within a few seconds, Terry was lying on the pitch like a dead body, and before medical staff could arrive, Terry's face started turning blue, which even scared the Arsenal players to their core. Manuel Almunia said, I was very scared, because when I saw him, his eyes were away, and he looked as though he was dead. As God almost gave up on him, physiotherapist Gary Lewin stormed in, as his savior, and brought him back to life. Terry was immediately given an oxygen mask, and a neck brace, and was carried toward the nearest hospital. Later, it was revealed that after Terry received a direct kick to the face, his tongue got stuck in his throat, thus making him unable to breathe. After recovery, Terry went straight to Lewin and thanked him by saying, I owe you one. Well, Terry was one of the luckiest players to be saved in time, but pulling Anderson out of his wrecked Audi R8 before it exploded is a miracle. The year is 2010. The setting? A nightclub, Sardina Biba, in Portugal. The music was loud, and 22-year-old Anderson was having the time of his life. As Anderson was getting famous for his late-night parties, heading home in the early morning was becoming his routine. At 6.45 AM, Anderson grabbed his 125,000-pound Audi R8 and drove towards his destination. However, what he failed to realize was the speed at which he was traveling. Before he could gain control of the wheel, he lost his balance, dragged the car off the road, and hit a wall of a farm in Garrazeria Braga. Although Anderson was not injured, the accident caused him to go completely unconscious. Soon, the damage to his car started emerging in the form of thick smoke, giving nearby witnesses a warning of an explosion. And just like a scene from a movie, Anderson was pulled out by the witnesses before his car exploded. These footballers are surely very grateful to be alive, so much so that many of them bought their girlfriend's stupidly expensive gifts as a thank you. To see these gifts, just click on this video right here!